Photo: Chris Holifield · CC BY-SA 2.0Alderton is older than 94% of UK towns: a median age of 52.8
Where 30% of households are one person living alone across England’s towns, Alderton has 22%. 482 residents in 203 households: that is Alderton at the 2021 Census. Census figures put households in flats at 1.5% in the village. Compared with other places, adults who have never married are scarce here: 27%, fewer than in 87% of UK towns.
A larger share of residents aged 65 and over than 83% of UK towns: 27%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
There is little gap on residents aged 15 to 24: 12%, about the same as across England’s towns. On average, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
More students than 81% of UK towns: 5.8% of adults in Alderton
What adults did at the 2021 Census (the ONS’s NS-SEC classes), and where residents lived a year earlier.
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
Address a year before the Census
Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.
Just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier (England’s towns: 11%). For full-time students, the comparison across England’s towns is 7.9%.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Fewer households with dependent children than 81% of UK towns: 24%
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Suffolk’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Households in Alderton hold 2.4 people on average (England’s towns: 2.4). Set beside that, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns. 3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home.
Only 6.4% of households have no car or van in Alderton
Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Cars or vans · share of households
By its share of households in terraced houses (8.9%), Alderton is below 91% of UK towns. 46% of households live in a detached house, more than in 86% of UK towns. Across England’s towns, the share of households without a car or van is 24%.
Only 3.9% of residents were born outside the UK in Alderton
Country of birth, year of arrival and main language, Census 2021.
Born outside the UK, by region · share of all residents; the bar runs to 25%
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Residents born abroad were most often born in EU countries (2.5%), then in the Middle East and Asia (1%). 99% of residents have English as their main language, a higher share than in 85% of UK towns. Across England’s towns, the share of residents born outside the UK is 18%.
96% of residents describe themselves as White British, more than in 86% of UK towns
How residents described themselves at the 2021 Census. Lines join the lowest and highest of the three figures.
Ethnic groups other than White British · all residents
White British, not charted: 96% of Alderton · Suffolk’s towns 86% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
The share of residents who describe themselves as Christian tops 62% of UK towns: 52%. On the census count, 39% of residents said they have no religion. The comparison figure for residents who describe themselves as White British is 73% across England’s towns.
57% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, more than in 92% of UK towns
Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 5 and over), Census 2021.
Partnership status · residents 16 and over
Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over
9 people care, unpaid, for 50 hours or more a week. On unpaid carers, Alderton sits higher than 59% of UK towns: 9.7%. Married adults and civil partners: 44% across England’s towns, for comparison.
29% of adults are qualified to degree level
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
In Alderton, 29% of adults hold a degree-level qualification, against 34% across England’s towns, while 17% have no qualification at all (18%).
Nearby, 2 of 7 towns have older populations than Alderton
Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alderton | 482 | — | 52.8 | 27% | 24% |
| Sutton Common | 1,262 | 4.3 mi | 29 | 12% | 43% |
| Kirton | 1,245 | 4.3 mi | 51.8 | 28% | 24% |
| Trimley St Martin | 1,725 | 5 mi | 45.9 | 21% | 24% |
| Felixstowe | 24,218 | 5 mi | 51 | 29% | 20% |
| Trimley St Mary | 3,736 | 5 mi | 48.4 | 25% | 24% |
| Martlesham Heath | 2,730 | 6.6 mi | 54.5 | 34% | 18% |
| Woodbridge | 10,146 | 6.6 mi | 53.3 | 33% | 21% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The Census was taken in a lockdown, in term time. 21 March 2021 fell in term time, and students were asked to give their term-time address, so most were counted where they study. Some may have been living with family that day.
- “Suffolk’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Suffolk (or England), summed the same way as Alderton’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out.
- Small counts are blurred. The ONS adds small random changes to Census counts to protect privacy, so the same total differs a little between tables, and the shares of a small town can move by a point or two.
Questions about Alderton’s residents
What is the population of Alderton?
The 2021 Census counted 482 people in Alderton’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Alderton?
The median age was 52.8 at the 2021 Census. 12% of residents were 15 to 24 and 27% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Alderton?
96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 86% across Suffolk’s towns. 3.9% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Alderton?
39% said they had no religion and 52% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.8% were Muslim and 7.9% didn’t answer.
Is Alderton good for families?
24% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Alderton’s schools page.
Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area (TS002, TS003, TS004, TS007A, TS008, TS015, TS017, TS019, TS021, TS029, TS030, TS039, TS044, TS045, TS062, TS067). All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.